How to Clear out Memory Cache
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In Windows’ Task Manager > Performance, it shows how much of the Physical memory is being used for Cache. When Windows is Restarted (or Power on/off) the Cache is cleared out. Is there a way to clear out the Cache without restarting Windows?
TIA
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@phat200 said in How to Clear out Memory Cache:
In Windows’ Task Manager > Performance, it shows how much of the Physical memory is being used for Cache. When Windows is Restarted (or Power on/off) the Cache is cleared out. Is there a way to clear out the Cache without restarting Windows?
TIA
Why would you want to?
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It slows down my PC. At one point, the Cache takes up 13GB of my PC (out of a total of 16GB RAM) – after I backup my emails!!
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@phat200 said in How to Clear out Memory Cache:
It slows down my PC. At one point, the Cache takes up 13GB of my PC (out of a total of 16GB RAM) – after I backup my emails!!
Post a screenshot of what you’re looking at. Don’t want to comment without a visual first.
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@phat200 That’s what I thought you were looking at. It’s a little complicated.
My understanding is that the value combines the totals of the Standby and Modified lists in Resource Monitor. If you press the Resource Monitor button, you can see those values under the Memory tab if you expand the Physical Memory display.
You really don’t have any control over these portions of the cache outside of closing programs so the cache use of those programs is released, or restarting your computer. If you use a program that consumes a lot of RAM, then the cache will grow so that the computer has to go back to disk less often for information. Really, closing programs will have minimal effect on the value because once the cache is established, Windows is anticipating that you will need that information again soon and is reluctant to release it. Restarting is really the only way to clear it unless you want to try using a 3rd party tool. I was a tech for many years and I hated using these kinds of utilities as the effects often were not as expected and sometimes would damage data, so I’m not endorsing or recommending you use a tool to clear the cache. BUT, if you do a web search for something like, “tools to clear windows ram cache” you will find some tools, maybe even a Microsoft tool, to do what you want. But, again, the results may make your system unstable and you end up rebooting anyway.
You must be backing up a lot of email for the cache to grow that large.
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Thanks.
That is what I found – closing programs does not clear out cache.
